A pack of 11 PowerPoint activities, including a description of the Norman invasion; the history of castles; features of castles; what life was like in castles; knights, people who lived in castles, and a castle life glossary.

Introduction - What do we already know about castles: Begins the topic with 4 pictures of different castles for the children to look at and discuss, with 2 slides for recording what they already know, and what they would like to find out.

The Norman Invasion: Gives a description of the Norman invasion, and how and why William the Conqueror introduced castles to England.

Different types of castle: Looks at how castles developed, from wooden motte and bailey castles, to stone keeps, and then concentric style castles. It looks at the different types of castles built near the Scottish borders, and why they were built. It ends with an explanation of why people stopped building castles.

What were castle buildings like?: Describes in detail different features of castles - the walls, gatehouse, portcullis, doors, murder holes, moat, drawbridge, keep, and dungeons.

Who lived in castles, and what did they do: Looks at the roles and jobs of all the people in the castle and surrounding area, from the lord to the peasant farmers, with a simple outline of Feudalism. It describes the lives of both Noble and peasant children.

What was it like living in a castle: Descriptions of different rooms in the tower; the Hall, the kitchen, the chambers, the chapel, and the privy. It explains what daily life was like, what food was eaten, where water was from, and what it was used for, how people bathed in a castle, how noisy it would be, the celebrations, and threats of attack.

Castle attacks: Explains the different siege tactics that were used to attack castles - Siege towers, battering rams, ballistas, catapults, and trebuchets.

Knights: Account of how a boy started as a page, then a squire before he could become a knight. Looks at chivalry, armour, weapons, coats of arms, and tournaments.

Interesting Facts: 9 pages of interesting facts about medieval times - How surnames were made; how the Normans gave us new words; strange foods; piggy banks, Nursery Rhymes, and place names.

Castles glossary - A 22 page glossary of castle features.

Skipton Castle: A 10 page study of the castle.

ACTIVITY SHEETS (pdf)

AFl Castles

Attack and defence: 6 pictures

Castles wordsearch

Castles writing sheets x 4

Bayeux tapestry worksheets x 5: with different parts of the tapestry to write about

Large castle shape: to cut and make a castle-shaped book

Castles acrostic poem

Castles topic front booklet

Design a coat of arms: a large blank coat of arms to design

Our Island Story - William the Conqueror

Stonework: For D&T activities

Wood:For D&T activities

Plus an adaptable medium term plan in Word

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